Top 12 questions you need to ask ENS vendors

When it comes to choosing an emergency notification system from an Emergency Notification System vendor, there are more than a few questions to ask. In fact, if we tried to put together a list there could be hundreds, and, for the more thorough individuals, possibly thousands of questions. The main issue isn’t necessarily just identifying the questions to ask, however, but drilling down to the ones that are the most relevant to your department, agency or municipality. So how do you determine which questions are most relevant?

First, it’s important to brainstorm the different types of use cases you would need a system for.

• Emergencies: Unplanned and unpredictable
• Day-to–day routine events: Road Closures or scheduling scheduling

In addition to this, how will you need to use your system? What features/functionality are important to you? Here is a sampling of questions you should be asking yourself:

• Do I need a system that is easy to use?
• Do I need a system that can be accessible anywhere?
• Do I need a system that can be used on any device?

For government agencies, citizens and staff are a priority. To ensure safety you need a system that can help you reach your citizens and staff with the right message, at the right time, regardless of any internal or outside variables. With the right system, you can accomplish this without adding any extra work to your current responsibilities.

The questions are slightly different for corporations. Businesses likewise need a critical communications system that can rapidly send information and instructions, during any type of emergency or incident, but also require real-time reporting of communications efforts with an audit trail for compliance and learning purposes.

In the paper, ENS Buyer’s Guide: The Questions You Need To Be Asking Vendors, you’ll learn what you need to know when selecting a notification system.